In the broadest reading possible, the Genesis creation account is a supernatural phenomenon that leaves nothing to chance. Darwinian evolution, in the broadest reading possible, is a natural phenomenon that leaves most everything to chance.

Thus, it’s hard to imagine two views of creation more at odds with each other.

Why, then, this irresistible urge to “baptize the devil” by seeking to harmonize evolution with Genesis? Though we can’t know individual motives, the overarching answer is tied to the contemporary belief that evolution must be true because, after all, “It’s science!”

But if science is so good at finding truth, why does the truth change so often? Why are scientific certitudes of one generation often mocked as myths by the next one? Why do the findings of science, the result of the “scientific method,” often contradict each other? When scientific explanations about present reality, about what can be handled, heard, seen, tested and retested, are filled with debate and controversy—why do so many people unquestionably accept every scientific proclamation about supposed events millions or billions of years ago?

Baptizing the Devil seeks to looks at these questions, and more.

Clifford Goldstein

About Author:

Clifford Goldstein, the author of 23 books, lives and works in the Baltimore-Washington, DC, area, where he has been writing and editing for 33 years. He has written on politics, religious liberty, philosophy, faith and theology. He holds an M.A. from Johns Hopkins University in Ancient Northwest Semitic Languages.

Most every age has myths, even creation myths. Ours is evolution. “But evolution can’t be a myth,” people say. “It’s science!” But the meta-myth of our age is that because something is science it must be true. Baptizing the Devil hopes to free believers from that myth, and the knee-jerk reaction that the only logical and rational response to the phrase “But it’s science!” is to surrender one’s beliefs to it, even such a foundational belief as creation.